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Chapter 8: He's a Magic Man

Sitting on top of a large rock, Kate gazed at the three dogs prancing around the field. It was that time of day when Iago allowed them to come outside for about three hours to get some air and stretch themselves. They had brought with them an orange disk made of some material Kate had never seen before. It was too light to be stone but too solid to be a leaf. She noticed that a lot of the things the dogs brought with them were made with the strange material. They tossed this disk to one another, tumbling and rolling to catch it, laughing all the while.

"Where's August?" Kate turned to Helen, who sat next to her on the giant stone. Helen smiled. Looking at the three below like a watchful mother, she said, "Back at the cave. He said he wanted to be alone for a while."

Kate's ears perked up, "He doesn't seem to be the kind of guy who keeps to himself."

Helen bobbed her head from right to left. "He's not, but he has his...moments. He told us this morning that he hadn't had any time to himself since we got here and that wanted to, I don't know, reflect for a while. He's probably trying to come up with some new riffs, or just lying around listening to his records."

"His what?"

"Oh, records? They uh...look kinda like that." Helen pointed towards the orange disk gliding through the air below. "Humans have a way to take sounds and put them in disks so they can hear them any time they want. Of course, records are a little out of date in their world because they have other ways. But August likes records because...well he tells me that when they crackle and echo they sound more...real. But I think there's another reason."

"What's that?"

Helen's face went blank. "Let's just say...someone really special to him gave them to him," she said somberly. Kate felt her chest fill with anxiety, but she did not know why. "A...girl?" Kate asked almost pleadingly. Helen smiled, "No. A friend of the family. Someone he was really close to." Kate felt relieved, but she still could not tell where the emotion came from. "Anyway," Helen continued, "He can't get enough of them. He's got dozens already. And whenever he listens to them, it's like he's in his own world."

Kate realized that she felt comfortable talking with Helen; even so than with her fellow alphas. She was smart, cunning, and open. Kate couldn't tell if she was older or younger then she was--no that it could be by much--but her eyes bore the wisdom of an elder alpha. And her sarcasm always made Kate laugh. She was stubborn, but not in the sense of ignorance; rather she would not budge from something she felt was right. Kate knew all of this from just spending a few days with her, though trying to tell herself that such short time with someone cannot reveal their character. But she did not get any indication that Helen was putting on a show. Kate even asked Timmy if Helen was always so rugged and steadfast, and she said, reluctantly, "Yea. You bet. But she's gotta be to keep the rest of us in line. Especially that brother of hers. She's more like the manager of our group than just the keyboardist. She's the invisible line that keeps us all together. Whether we like it or not." Kate was amazed, and even more so by the fact that despite Helen's inward solidarity, her body was not seem as robust as her soul. She was very slender, her reddish brown fur and hair were silky, and her brown eyes were not earthly and cold like many Kate had seen, but twinkled with every smile--which was often.

"Helen," asked Kate gently, "what kind of names do you have? I mean...not that I think they're weird...it's just that I've never heard them before." Helen's face bore no sign of offense or discomfort as she answered with a chuckle, "Our mom told us that she named us after human saints or something. Augustine Francis and Helen Rachael."

"What are saints?"

"Hmm...I just you can say: the best of humans."

Very fitting, Kate thought,I wish we had some wolves like...she stopped herself.

"By the way," said Kate remembering something that she fought herself not to bring up, "it's it true what they say about August."

Helen looked at Kate puzzled. "What who says?"

"Well...we've been getting a lot of...there's a lot of worry about his...what I'm trying to say is, is he really into girl like...a lot." Helen laughed, "Absolutely. Back home. He has a new girlfriend each week if he's lucky. If not, he has a new one each day."

"Oh."

"He loves girls and they love him."

"I see," said Kate looking to the ground.

"Of course, it takes someone special to really get his attention. Pretty faces might keep him interested for a few hours. But it takes real character to keep his attention."

Kate face perked up. "He told you that?"

"In a way. It's pretty easy to notice when you've known him for as long as I have." She chuckled, "What am I going to do with him? If you think he's sleeping around with any of the girls in the pack, just let me know and I'll have a word with him. I'll try not to let that happen. But Kate..."

"Yes."

"If it's anything less than that...I mean...you know...I don't think a little puppy love will hurt anyone. Remember, we've been away from the outside world for a while now."

"I see. No, I don't think a little flirtation should be a problem, but no promises. Tell him..." She stopped.

"Yes?" Helen turned her head to the side in puzzlement.

"I'll tell him myself. Thank you for talking to me, Helen"

"Anytime," Helen sounded a little confused, but did not inquire any further as Kate turned and headed in the direction of the den. Looking back at the three dogs tossing the dish, which she knew as a Frisbee, she couldn't help but think to herself:

_You dog, August. You got another one.

_

*****************

Kate excused Rusty from his post at the mouth of the den. He warned her that he had been heard nothing but strange sounds all afternoon, but that they had stopped suddenly. Once Rusty was out of sight, Kate began down the tunnel of the cave. She heard nothing, even as she entered into the first stone room. There was just silence.

What if he escaped?

Her heart raced as she started for the adjacent room, anticipating on finding the room empty and silent also...him gone for good.

Then, right there in the corner of the cavern's stone walls, lying down in that soft, strange fabric, staring up at the dark ceiling with his glowing green eyes, his forepaws behind his head, was the shaggy dog with the red and pink fur. She didn't say anything, or made a sound as she entered, but he looked at her grinning without any startle or surprise. The glistening in his eyes welcomed her, but as if he had been expecting her. Their words rang in Kate's mind:

You came! I knew you would!

She returned the gesture with a smile. He did not speak as he got up, but once on his feet, he nodded his to the side as he moved across the room beaconing her to follow. Kate could only comply, staring as his figure as he led her over toward the generator. It was only then did Kate notice where the light in the room was coming from. There was not a touch in site, at least not the conventional one. Instead, a florescence of soft, blue light came from a peculiar, sizeable bulb. The bulb laid on the floor and was hooked to the generator, which hummed and vibrated. She looked back at August, he was now presenting her with a black disk with an empty center and tiny incisions that spiraled around it from its center to the ends.

"Come here a minute."

Kate joined his side. "Is that a record?" Kate exclaimed as if discovering a long lost prize. August's floppy ears perked up, his grinning face rising with astonishment. "Yes, it is," he said with the gently rasp of his voice. Then he turned, facing a wooden, square platform that was sitting on large rock with a flat surface. "Watch this," he said as he placed the record in the center of the wooden box. He then took two black cords, which attached to two black boxes, hooking them into the wooden box. Following the cords, Kate saw that the wooden box was also hooked up to the generator. The jovial mutt flicked a switch and the record began to magically rotate. Then she saw August pull a thin stick with a sharp end that angled downward out from the box's side and place the sharp end on a selected point of the record. Then there was sound coming from the two black boxes. After a loud scratch pieced through Kate's ears, causing her to flinch, a peaceful melody materialized. What followed was the voice of a women singing.

"Cold late night so long ago

_ When I was not so strong you know_

_ A pretty man came to me_

_ Never seen eyes so blue_

_ I could not run away_

_ It seemed we'd seen each other in a dream_

_ It seemed like he knew me_

_ He looked right through me_..."

Kate was snapped out of her trance seeing August staring right at her with his eerily hypnotic greens, his muzzle only a few inches from hers. "Would you like to know what she's saying? Would you like me to sing it for you?" he whispered. Kate could feel his breath softly touch the end of her nose.

"What'd you mean?" she asked, inclining her head backward a bit. "I know what she's saying." August raised his right brow, letting his grinning mouth fall into mocking puzzlement.

"Really?" he said. It was not condescending but it was straight.

"Yes," said Kate, a little confused by his tone, "I mean...I've heard humans talk before and I found myself able to read one of their signs once. 'Idaho'." August leaned casually against stone on which laid the wooden box.

"All right hot stuff," he spoke with his head raised while sporting his beaconing smile, "show me what you got."

"Huh?"

"Sing it to me?"

Kate's paws froze, her stomach dropped, and her eyes looked down. She could howl, but she couldn't sing. Not like a human. Not like him.

"Come on, you can do it."

Suddenly she felt her mouth moving, and she knew she must making sounds feeling the air pass through her throat.

"Winter nights we sang in tune

_ Played inside the months of moon_

_ Never think of never_

_ Let this spell last forever_

_ Summer over passed to fall_

_ Tried to realized it all_

_ Mama says she's a worried_

_ Growing up in a hurry..."_

Kate had no idea what came over her, but there she stood, right before the shaggy dog with the mocking grin and glistening green eyes, who bobbed his head with the rhythm of her voice. She just couldn't refuse to that face, and she just couldn't stop, especially when he began to join in.

"Come on home, girl" he said with a smile

_ I cast my spell of love on you a woman from a child!_

But try to understand, try to understand, try, try, try to understand, I'm a magic man."

Then he got up from his slouched position and walked towards her.

"So it's true. You can understand humans."

"Yes. And I think Humphrey can, too."

He circled her. "You have a rare gift."

"Why?"

"Don't you know. The ability for a canine...err any animal really... to understand humans is a rare thing. I can and so can Helen. That's how we were able to start our band and play human music. But the rest can't. Not Timmy, Ronnie, and Reggie can't. But you can."

Kate's eyes widened, "Really? I had no idea..."

"--That you're special."

Kate lowered her head, sporting a bashful smile. It was the first time she had ever really felt embarrassed to anyone, especially in the face of a non-alpha. But it was as if August could peer into her soul and snickered knowing that he could. Then he stepped forward again, his muzzle meeting hers at about an inch.

"Would you like to dance?"

Kate inclined her head to the side, "You mean...watch me dance?" August laughed, "No, I mean like together. Like humans do."

"How do humans...dance together?"

"Do you want me to show you?"

Kate nodded. Then without warning, August rapped his forelegs around her and pulled her up onto her hind-legs, raising himself up also. "Put the arms of your forelegs around me," he whispered, his head hovering against the side of hers. And she did so, holding on tightly, as if she were relying on him to keep her from falling. Then, steadily, August began to move his body. "Just follow my lead," he said. The music playing transitioned into stirring guitar solos and August led her movements to the rhythm of the riffs. Twirling together, Kate started to get dizzy, but she didn't care. It was as if she were fading into a dream, and that she was taking August with her.

Then they stopped.

August whirled from side to side in Kate's dazed vision. But as her eyes began to adjust, she saw that he was no longer smiling. His face was blank. But his eyes...were hungering. Then she saw him slowly moving his muzzled forward with smooth ease...toward hers. His lips began to contract and it looked as if he were aiming not for her nose but for her mouth.

"What are you doing?"

August move his head backward to meet her eyes. "I was going to kiss you."

"What?"

August chuckled, "A kiss. It's something that human's do when they're in love."

Kate froze. Her jaw hung trembling. She wanted to shout at him. You have no idea what love is, she wanted to yell. She didn't want to look like a fool in the face of this...

But she couldn't speak. Not as his eyes glanced over her full self. The words from the record rang in her head.

"...try to understand, he's a magic man."

But she managed to push herself off of him and start for the room's exit. "I'm sorry," she finally blurted out, not facing him, "I...I'm already in love with someone else."

"Really," she heard him say from behind her, "Are you sure?"

_I know nothing anymore. _

Kate turned back to the sight of the dog. Looking at him made her sure of something though. She looked at his carefree and unapologetic face, his legs that stood relaxed and prepared, and his mouth that hung in a wide grin. She knew that there was something about him that she found familiar. Something that she...

This is how life should be...honestly happy. This thought keep repeating in her head whenever she looked at him.

"I can't, August. I just can't. I'm sorry, but I am in love with someone else." Then she darted out of the room. She ran as fast as she could, leaving no possible chance for him to call her back, the music still echoing off the walls of the cave:

"But try to understand, try to understand, try, try, try to understand, he's a magic man."